The Pythian (former) New York City - Knights of Pythias on Waymarking.com

Built in 1927 to serve as a meeting place for the 120 Pythian lodges of New York City. One of the city's most fabulous buildings, the Pythian is richly decorated in brightly colored, glazed terracotta embellishments depicting figures of antiquity.

It was designed by Thomas W. Lamb, one of the country's foremost designers of movie palaces.

As the organization's popularity declined, the Pythians leased space in the building to Decca Records. In 1954, Bill Haley and His Comets recorded their album Rock Around the Clock at the Pythian in 1954. Other artists who recorded there include Buddy Holly, Sammy Davis Jr. and Billie Holiday.

In 1958 the building was purchased by the New York Institute of Technology as that college's main campus.

It was converted to a condominium in 1983 and now contains 84 residential apartments. The conversion and restoration, designed by David Gura, altered the building's largely windowless facade by inserting many new windows, but it managed to retain most of its exuberant decorative features. Each apartment is different and there are four professional offices on the ground floor.

Some decorative elements that were removed from their original positions were salvaged for use elsewhere within the building, whose renovation won a residential design award from the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Singer/songwriter Stefani Germanotta, better known by her performing name Lady Gaga, grew up in The Pythian where she once lived.

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